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1.1.1 FNS

Tonight, I will discuss the path of devotion. You know, many people think that to know God, one must be very knowledgeable of the scriptures, of all of the fine practices. One must be aware of the scriptures, but the true knowledge of God cannot be found in any book, in any scripture. The scripture may be good to direct the mind, to tell the do's and don'ts, but the experience of Divinity must come, not through reading, not through any indirect methodology, but through direct contact and what is the best way to the Divine Entity? It is through devotion. That is, the cultivation of love for God, love for the Supreme, love for the Divinity that lies within you. It is through this love for Parama Purus'a, for the Supreme Consciousness, that you become most attracted.

You know, a name for that Divine Consciousness is Krishna. Do you know the meaning of the word Krishna? Krishna means the all attracting entity. That one which will attract everyone, everything to itself the all attracting entity is Krishna. So Krishna is completely compelling, completely attracting to living beings. So that Supreme Consciousness may be called Krishna because it attracts living beings unto itself. It is the all attracting Entity. So all of the living beings are revolving about that Infinite Consciousness, pure, pristine and unchanging which is at the very base of all existence. All the living beings are dancing like gopis around Lord Krishna. They are dancing and dancing around that Infinite Consciousness and that Infinite Consciousness has all of the most attractive qualities and characteristics. And when expressed in this manifest universe, that Consciousness will be all attracting to living beings.

Now, how does one develop this attraction, develop the awareness of this attraction that one has to the Great? When knowledge of the Great, when the vision of the Great comes within one's sphere, one begins to perceive the qualities and characteristics of the Divine. And when, through the grace of that Divinity, one is allowed the glimpse of that sweet Entity, the absolute compassion, the Divine Love which exists, when one is allowed to grasp the impeccable qualities, the Supreme Justice, the Infinite Love, when one sees beauty that stuns the mind and is incomprehensible to the limited human experience, then a feeling of awe comes, a feeling of love is generated within the heart and the living being begins to experience that Divine Entity directly because this feeling of love is what is necessary to know Him. To know that Divinity, to know that Infinite Consciousness, you must open your heart, open your feelings and directly experience that flow of love, that flow of grace from that all attracting Entity who is at the very core of this manifest universe, at the very core of all creation. That Consciousness which underlies all expression, that attracting Consciousness. So from that Consciousness we may call lord Krishna, the one who attracts all, we will feel the very emanations of great compassion. We will feel the very expression of infinite beatitude. We will feel love that is boundless and from that very Entity is a flow of grace coming to each and every living being, enveloping each and every living being in absolute love.

Do you know that Parama Purus'a, that Supreme Consciousness loves each and every being? Each and every creature in this creation is very, very dear to Him. Each and every creature is so close to Him. He has infinite fondness for each and every being and so He cannot help Himself. He must shower His grace upon all. And why is it that all do not experience this love which is being showered by Parama Purus'a each and every moment, 24 hours a day on the living beings? It is not experienced because the umbrella of ego is held and when that umbrella of ego is held, the shower of love is diverted and falls to the sides so the living being does not experience the sweet tenderness, this divine flow of love which is given by that all attracting Entity. But should the living being take down the umbrella of ego, remove the pride, remove the self important "I" feeling and open the heart, open the mind dropping the ego, then the shower of love, which is ever falling, ever being given to each and every living being, can be experienced directly. For that shower of love is the birthright of every human being. Do you know it is the very nature of a human being to search for that love? It is the dharma of a human being to search for that infinite love, Parama Purus'a, the Divine Consciousness.

It is the very nature of human beings to pursue this Divinity. It is inherent in your humanity. So the pursuit of the Great is a part and parcel of human existence. And while the human being is drawn to pursue the Great, the Great is also drawn to each and every human being. So this is a mutual pursuit. While you are longing for God, God is also longing to bring you close to Him, to envelop you in His arms and to melt your existence into His. It is His longing that all the living beings should come home to Him. They should be brought home. They should come home so He is calling to all to each and everyone. "I am here waiting for you. Come home to Me. Come home to Me. I am waiting for you." because it is His longing that all the living beings should come again into Him, should come and melt themselves into His existence, into unblemished Divinity. So while you are searching for Him, he is also calling to you. It is the nature of a human being to search and it is the nature of Parama Purus'a to call, to long that all the living beings come again to Him, come into Him. So when these two forces come in contact, when lover and beloved come very close, a great moment occurs. So do not hold out the umbrella of vanity, of pride, of self importance, of self knowledge. Do not hold up the vanity, the ego, the pride. Let it go, let it go. Become like the small child and open your heart, open your mind to that Divinity which lies within you. Let that Divine Lord Krishna come to you and take you in His arms. Let Him nurture you, let Him care for you. Allow yourself to feel His love falling upon you like a gentle rain. When you do this, when you open yourself freely like the small child and you come to the arms of the lord, to be embraced for all eternity, when you let Him wipe away your tears and embrace you in love that is unqualified, then the true meaning of happiness will become apparent to you. For that happiness is a happiness beyond all duality. It is a happiness without contrast in the singularity of love absolute, where Parama Purus'a, where the Divine resides and where you also reside, deep in the core of your heart.

Are there questions?

Q: When Parama Purus'a draws a being back to Divinity, that being dissolves back into His arms, what happens to that individual consciousness? What happens to the individual consciousness of that being? Is it melted completely, is it dissolved? Are the memories of that being retained somewhere? How does that work?

When the drop of water is dropped into the ocean, it exists, does it not? But it cannot be separated from the ocean itself. It becomes one with the ocean. The small container in which it was held is gone and dropped into the mighty ocean, it becomes the ocean itself. It is only the container that it has around it, this ego, this sense of separate individuality which keeps it apart from the ocean, for by nature it is the same substance as that which is the ocean and when the container is gone and the drop falls in the ocean, what it becomes cannot be defined separately from the ocean. It is the mighty ocean itself. So nothing is lost in this process, nothing is lost. Only that which is illusion, that which is based not in reality but in illusionary perception is dissolved so that which is real may be known. Nothing is lost.